Tag Archives: Michael Bourn

Candidates for the outfield have been dropping off the Phillies radar like flies the past week.

B.J. Upton signed with the Braves, Angel Pagan went back to the Giants and Shane Victorino landed in Boston. And with the price tags for Josh Hamilton (likely going back to Texas) and Michael Bourn being too high, the market for a starting centerfielder and corner outfield has thinned.

But manager Charlie Manuel talked about some ideal options to fill a corner outfield position as well as center field.

A handful of names, in a series of tweets by David Murphy of the Daily News, included Ichiro Suzuki, Ryan Ludwick and Cody Ross.

“We’ve talked about Ichiro. I think Ichiro can help our team,” Manuel said, leaving people to interprete that any way they want to.

The Phillies are in need of a new center fielder, and general manager Ruben Amaro is going to target the free agent market for one.

Shane Victorino was traded to the Dodgers at the deadline and John Mayberry Jr isn’t viewed as an everyday center fielder. That leaves Amaro looking for a fresh face, and preferably a right-handed hitting one at that.

“If we can get someone who would give us more balance from the right side, that would be great,” Amaro said. “That’s not necessary, but it would be helpful. We need somebody who can be a plus defender. Defense and pitching is going to win. As always, we saw it again in these playoffs, San Francisco were champions because they caught it and pitched it. Yes, I’d like to add to our offense. But we absolutely have to catch it and pitch it. We can’t lose sight of that as the basis of how we’ll be successful.”

That spells out free agent center fielder B.J. Upton. Upton is an ideal fit, mainly because Upton does a lot offensively and could provide the Phillies with some pop from the right side of the plate.

Either way, the Phillies need to improve in that department big time, and a lot of pressure is on Amaro to do just that.

Phils pinch hitter John Mayberry drives in the game-winning run with a single to score Ben Francisco. (Photo by John Russo)

The fans knew it was over as soon as the ball left John Mayberry Jr’s bat.

Perhaps it was the fact the Phils had the bases loaded with one out that forced Astros center fielder Michael Bourn to play shallow. But the moment Mayberry ripped a screamer to center with the game tied 4-4 in the 9th, the fans knew it was over Bourn’s head and the game was over.

Mayberry’s winner wouldn’t have been made possible if it weren’t for the Phils showing resiliency in their first action of the 2011 season.

Brett Myers had been dominating the Phils through the first seven innings, holding them two only two runs on three hits.

The final week leading up to the trade deadline makes for some of the most exciting and exhausting news in baseball. Beat writers, fans and owners dread the July 31 date and breath a huge sigh of relief when 4:00 PM passes.

This year was no different. With teams like the Phillies, Giants and Braves looking to bolster their offense and the Yankees and Red Sox looking to make splashes in pitching, the deadline can get hairy for the serious competitors and first timers.

Here are a handful of teams that made the biggest splashes at the deadline, hoping for that final push into the post season and baseball greatness.

THE WINNERS

Cleveland Indians – Ubaldo Jimenez: The Indians made a huge splash at the deadline, trading for Colorado’s ace Ubaldo Jimenez. Jimenez is one of the game’s best young starters and will have an immediate impact on a team that could be one good starter away from winning their first AL Central crown since 2007.

A year removed from winning 19 games and posting a 2.88 ERA, Jimenez is struggling this season. He’s been mediocre at best, compiling a 6-9 record and 4.46 ERA on a Rockies team that is 10 games behind any chance at the post season. But the Indians are 2.5 behind the Detroit Tigers and Jimenez’s presence is a significant upgrade.

The only interesting thing that remains to be seen is if Jimenez will be effective in the American League. He’s been struggling this season and is now walking into a tougher hitting league. This move could prove to be a huge step forward for the Indians or a monumental bust.